for those accepted:

[economics]

what's a good funding offer?

yale's 36.5 seemed to be +10000 than typical places, didn't it?

how much do the top5-10 offeR?

[unitroot]

Anything above 25K is way in the upper tail of distribution. Public universities rarely (never?) offer so much, and only a few private universities might offer something in that range. The +30K stipends are given only by a few top 10 departments.

[shubhamk]

since we are discussing funding...i had a question though unrelated...i got formal offer letter from Penn State today and it states that
Total Stipend $ 20,000 Plus Remission of Tuition Yes

then inside in fine print it's stated that Taxes would also be deductable on this and Health Insurance Charges also deductable....

Since I am an international applicant can you throw light on how much these "taxes" and "health charges" come to be, on an average?? and what are the points to keep in mind for "Remission of Tuition"

[breakz]

Remission of tuition means you pay zero tuition. Thus, you're getting a package with $20,000 + tuition.

However, PSU is deducting the cost of health insurance from your $20k stipend. I'm not sure of the tax implications, but the stipend is considered "income" and is therefore taxable.

[averageall]

Yale`s offer of 36.5K+1.1K is really surprising me!!!

[nzecon]

Remission of tuition means you pay zero tuition. Thus, you're getting a package with $20,000 + tuition.

However, PSU is deducting the cost of health insurance from your $20k stipend. I'm not sure of the tax implications, but the stipend is considered "income" and is therefore taxable.

That's odd - I would have thought the stipend is treated as a research grant rather than income, and not taxed. that's how it works in NZ.

[softsquirrel]

In France, fellowships are not taxed, but doctoral stipends are, at least as far as I'm concerned.

[breakz]

That's odd - I would have thought the stipend is treated as a research grant rather than income, and not taxed. that's how it works in NZ.

It might depend on how it's awarded, but I've had to report all stipends as taxable income. I'm not 100% but I do speak from experience.

Of course, a quick call to the econ dept can solve this.

[shubhamk]

It might depend on how it's awarded, but I've had to report all stipends as taxable income. I'm not 100% but I do speak from experience.

Of course, a quick call to the econ dept can solve this.

hmmm...nice idea...will do that!!!

in the meantime I checked a couple of sites
UPenn mentioned
"Although no reporting or withholding is required for U.S. students, the students must report and pay federal income tax on any payments in excess of tuition, fees, books, and certain other expenses. Further, there are special rules for international students. All Educational Fellowship grants to international students must be reported on IRS Form 1042S. If the student is not from a tax treaty country, then federal income tax must be withheld from the stipend allowance at 14%. (In my case, US India Tax Treaty gives one Personal Exemption of $3100 from taxable Income and some standard Exemption. This is important otherwise University would start deducting 14% straightway!!! )Those students from tax treaty countries that have a provision for scholarships and fellowships, may claim exemption from withholding by completing Form W-8BEN. For information on international students, please consult the Foreign Student Tax Guide."
Penn: Office of the Comptroller
and also some Tax Standards are mentioned here for International Students
Financial Information for Graduate Students at MTU

[averageall]

shubhamk, you`ve been into such a detail. Thanks for the information, it`s useful for me too.